Slide won't, err, slide!

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

So, we just returned from the Fort and had a wonderful time. But, as we were breaking down to head out I went to hit the slide button and got nothing. No lurch or pop or groans or sputters. No hint of the motor doing anything. In or out. Nothing. I tried fiddling with all the wire nuts and checked for good contact on the battery. I ended up retracting the slide manually (laying on my back under the couch torquing a small ratchet for an hour!) and we got home without incident. Well, now I'm trying to figure out what's up.

• There are 4 wires that go to the switch: red (house 12+), black (house -), green and yellow (reversible motor power).
• My multi-meter shows that black and red are delivering 12-13v and ground.
• I tested the switch and each position makes a circuit.
• I brought the battery into the camper and hooked it directly to the motor and it sprung to life, both in and out.
• I hooked the battery to the red and black positions on the switch and the switch activated the motor, in and out.
• I have traced the lines as best I can and I am 95% certain there is no slide out motor control board somewhere upstream that might have failed. 

So, I'm out of ideas. How can I have 12v provided to the switch by the house power and it not work, but provided directly by the battery it does? I have monitored the power as I hit the switch, with everything wired normally, and the voltage drops to 0 as soon as the switch is tripped and climbs back to 12v when released. The battery is brand new (bought en route to FL, different story!) and my charger says it is fully charged. The terminal connections are tight. Not sure what else to try other than running a dedicated line from the battery to the slide switch! Any help would be appreciated.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

This may be obvious...and I apologize in advance if it is...but can't you just lay a finger aside your nose? 

[Grumpy and Grandma 740]

What brand is the slide mechanism? I have personally never seen a slide with out some sort of control board that "feels the load" on the motor to stop it as it hits the wall going in and out. Many times they are put in the dumbest places. All three for our MH are under the wardrobe in the back.

[dieseldave 5]

Sounds like you have ruled out any issues between the switch and motor.  When the slide becomes fully retracted or extended, do you hear a clicking sound from the motor?  If you do, those units usually do not have a control board.  If this is the case, based on your statement "I have monitored the power as I hit the switch, with everything wired normally, and the voltage drops to 0 as soon as the switch is tripped and climbs back to 12v when released." it sounds like you have a bad connection somewhere between the switch and the battery.  It sounds like there is enough of a connection between the switch and battery to provide 12 volts but once you hit the button there is not enough of a connection to operate the motor.  I would inspect every connection between the switch and battery for corrosion/tightness.

[devores 382]

Allot of times, there's a fuse inline to things like this. The fuse isn't always in an obvious place, so look around. The fuse might have blown preventing the power from reaching the motor.

 

You said you tested the power at the switch, how about from the switch to the motor. Use your volt meter at the motor side and have someone operate the switch. Then work your way back to the switch at every wire junction until you find the bad connection/blown fuse.

 

Edited to add:

 

I had a slide problem recently where one slide would not move. Same thing as you, hit the switch and nothing. No sounds, movement, nothing. I reset all of the breakers in my circuit panel and the slide worked fine after that. The best I can tell is there may be a self resetting breaker in the motor circuits that tripped somehow and resetting the power to it reset the breaker.

[ImDownWithDisney 342]

I agree with Dave. Look for an inline fuse first and or a breaker. Fwiw, there are not any circuit boards for the slides in my camper. They will run in/out and bog the motor down.

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

It is very difficult to trace the lines with 100%certainty, thanks to looms and obstructions, but I'm fairly certain the motor wires go straight from the switch to the motor, and the power wires go from the switch to the undercarriage (and then, presumably, straight to the battery). So, to trace it back any further will require crawling under, and that will have to wait a day or two for warmer weather... gravel drives suck on a warm day but they're ten times worse on a cold one!

[Tigger 33]

Sounds like a bad switch that will show 12 volts with no load but won't carry the load. If you have power going in and out with the momotor disconnected but only going in with motor connected replace the switch. And yes a lot of slide rooms use a motor and a switch that reverses polarity.

[Andrew Roberts 17]

slide motors are fused. look in fuses with the power converter they are likely 30 amp

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

Yeah, I checked all the fuses first thing, nothing marked as being for the slide but inspected each one anyhow. Even pulled the converter to see if an inline was hidden behind, or a controller. No dice. I should be able to do my undercarriage inspection later today.

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

Yeah, I checked all the fuses first thing, nothing marked as being for the slide but inspected each one anyhow. Even pulled the converter to see if an inline was hidden behind, or a controller. No dice. I should be able to do my undercarriage inspection later today.

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

So I crawled up underneath and found a crusty looking breaker up near the tongue on the dedicated hot line to the switch. It's a 30a Shortstop, and I assume it is meant to be of the auto-reset variety, since it is so difficult to get to. Everything is so corroded I think I will get new terminal ends and a new breaker. Off to the parts store.

[Memphis 105]

Good Work. Sure sounds like you found you problem.  Please follow up and let us know how it works out.

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

That did it. I also bought a proper crimper (ratcheting) and replaced all my terminal ends while I was at it. Now it's all as it should be. Thanks for the help, guys.